Head Start Annual Report 2016

December 31, 2017

Early Head Start – Child Care Partnership

As the grantee of the Early Head Start-Child Care Partnership (EHS-CCP) Grant and in accordance with the Head Start Readiness Act of 2007, the Nebraska Early Childhood Collaborative (NECC) submitted their 2016 Annual Report to the Office of Head Start and the public, providing an overview of their program.

Through its partnership with the Omaha Early Learning Centers, the Collaborative sets out to achieve its mission of continuing to build their reach and improve their ability to provide low-cost, high-quality business services to their clients, member centers, and communities. They strive to improve the quality of education across the state of Nebraska and promote the importance of early learning.

2016 Early Head Start Report

The Nebraska Early Childhood Collaborative’s Annual Report highlighted key achievements throughout the year, and in April 2017, NECC participated in its first Federal Monitoring Review as a part of its Early head Start-Child Care Partnership program performance review. The intent was determine the quality of the relationship between NECC and its EHS-CCP partner, the Omaha Early Learning Centers.

The Collaborative achieved a satisfactory progress compliance within the federal requirements detailed in the Fiscal Year 2016 EHS-CCP Monitoring Protocol. The Federal Monitoring Event encompassed compliance in Fiscal management, Health and Safety, Education and Child Development, and much more. Achieving a satisfactory rating was by and large one of the organizations greatest achievements that year.

Program Resources

All families and children enrolled at the Omaha Early Learning Centers receive access to all of the many provided resources, including:

Program-wide, continuous improvement planning

Qualified teachers

Curriculum implemented with fidelity

Enhanced learning environment with an emphasis on social-emotional learning

Family Engagement Specialists to support and empower families

Increased parent engagement and education opportunities

Policy Council membership opportunities

Full-time on-site nurse

On-site Mental Health Specialist

In 2016, the Omaha Early Learning Centers served 160 children; 88 children were served at the Skinner location, and 72 were served at Gateway. School readiness data for the 160 children served demonstrated the link between high-quality early childhood programs and the immediate, positive developmental outcomes, as well as positive long-term academic performance. The program has strenghts in the areas of Language (listening and speaking), Interactions, Activities, Program Structure, and Support for Parents and Staff. OELC classrooms were rated very positively on Emotional and Behavioral Support, and received a slightly lower rating on Engaged Support for Learning which is an area that commonly ranks low across the nation. More key data points, a full financial audit, and program information can be found in the full report below.